Smallville: Deception
by Caitlin-Todd
Summary: When a mysterious stranger comes to Smallville, Clark gets suspicious and makes it his mission to reveal the stranger's secret. Which is easier said than done when Lois starts to get involved with the guy. Set in Season 5. CLOIS.
1. Chapter 1

**SMALLVILLE_  
"Deception__"_**

**A/N: **_This story is written during the beginning of Season 5 while Clark was still at college and Jonathan was alive. It might seem a bit weird to upload this now but I felt like getting it uploaded before my latest Smallville fan fiction. I've gone through this story before to correct grammar errors but some might have been overseen. The story is so far 23 pages long and still not entirely complete, so I'm not in the mood to double check everything. Anyways, I'm hoping this story will get some more attention than last time but I won't be removing it again. Happy reading! ;)_

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* * *

_**_  
_**"Lois! Come on, you've been in there for almost an hour now!" Clark Kent yelled out and kept banging on the bathroom door.

The sound of pouring water soon stopped and after a few minutes the door opened.

"Morning, Smallville!" Lois Lane said with a perky smile, pulling the towel tighter around her.

Water was slowly dripping from her long blond hair as she moved past Clark without another word. Clark sighed and quickly shut the door behind him, very well knowing that there wasn't any hot water left for him but right now he didn't care.

He had gotten up at the crack of dawn to get his chores done at super speed so that Lois won't notice anything, and yet somehow she always managed to beat him to the bathroom every morning. At times like these Clark wished he could use his powers around the house again; just like before Lois had moved in.

By the time Clark arrived downstairs, breakfast was already over for the others. Lois was still lingering at the kitchen table, flipping through a fashion magazine while sipping on her cup of coffee. Clark glared over at her, suppressing a grunt. She had made herself at home already on the second day and now Clark truly regretted ever allowing her to stay.

But of course it hasn't just been his decision; his parents had practically welcomed Lois with open arms. Something Clark still couldn't understand.

"Oh, there you are! Clark, you better hurry or you'll be late for class," Martha Kent said as she walked into the kitchen, carrying a stack of papers.

"Well I wouldn't be running late if a certain person didn't occupy the bathroom every morning," Clark said and walked over to the refrigerator.

"Hey, it's not my fault that you overslept _again_!" Lois said without taking her eyes away from the magazine.

Clark gave her another glare behind her back while he poured himself a glass of juice.

"Who said I overslept?" he asked sarcastically, even though he knew that Lois always assumed he overslept when he was actually doing his shores. But of course Clark couldn't tell Lois this, not even when he wanted to prove her wrong.

"What do you call it when you get up bed thirty minutes after your alarm clock goes off? God that thing even woke _me_ up!" Lois complained, still completely absorbed by some quiz in the magazine.

Clark froze and glanced over at Martha, who had stopped sorting the papers at the moment.

"Lois, why don't you go and start the car? I'll be right out," Martha said. Lois finished her cup of coffee and put away the fashion magazine.

"Sure thing, Mrs. Kent. See ya, Smallville!" she said with a smirk as she walked past Clark. When the door closed behind her, Martha turned to Clark with a worried look.

"Look I know we've talked about this before but we both know it's the only way I can get things done without her noticing," Clark said and grabbed his backpack from the kitchen counter.

"Clark, it never looks good getting late for school; especially not college," Martha said and Clark knew she wouldn't budge on the subject. So he just nodded and let her win the argument this time.

"Speaking of school; I better run," Clark said while glancing down at his watch.

Martha gave him a warning look and started collecting the papers. Clark walked over to the fruit bowl and that's when he suddenly heard the distant sound of an engine. It quickly got louder and before Clark had the chance to react, a car came crashing into the tractor with a loud bang.

Clark quickly rushed outside and was glad to see that nobody had been harmed. Except for the car; the hood had been totally smashed in and there wasn't much left of it.

"_Oh my God_!" Lois gasped and quickly ran over to the car.

She glanced through the car window and found herself staring into the eyes of a guy that was about her age. Clark ran over to the car and was even gladder to see that the guy wasn't seriously hurt, in spite of everything. Lois took a step aside and Clark opened up the busted car door without any problems. The guy managed to get out of the car wreck without any help. And he didn't even have more than a few bruises on him, which surprised Lois and Clark.

"Let me guess; you got a little lost?" Lois asked sarcastically.

"Something like that. And I'm sorry about your tractor; I'll be sure to pay for the damages," he said with an apologetic smile.

"The important thing is that you're okay," Clark said, very well knowing that he could fix the tractor in a matter of seconds. Luckily the damages weren't so bad after all.

"Yeah I suppose. Hey, do you mind if I use your phone? I might be able to hitch a ride with the tow truck when it gets here to collect my car," the guy said.

"Yeah sure," Clark said and they walked back to the house.

Martha was shocked to find out that there was practically not a scratch on the guy, just like Lois and Clark had been. And it still puzzled Clark, although he dismissed it for now. He had enough things to think about at the moment than some stranger.

"The phone is out in the hallway," Clark said and pointed the guy in the right direction.

"Thanks," he said as he left the kitchen, Martha turned to Lois and Clark.

"What happened out there?" she asked and Lois and Clark glanced at each other.

"Guess you can say it was some kind of a miracle," Lois said and shrugged. But Martha could tell by looking at Clark that he didn't agree.

"Did he say how he got here? It's not exactly every day people accidentally end up in this part of Smallville," Martha said.

"He has hardly said anything. Not even his name," Clark said, and in that moment the guy walked back in the kitchen.

"Good news; the tow truck will be here shortly. So I'll just be outside waiting for it. Thanks for your help, especially considering that I busted up your tractor," he said and got his wallet out of his jeans pocket. He walked up the kitchen counter and put down a hundred-dollar bill.

"That should hopefully cover the damages. Thanks again," he said and flashed a smile before walking out through the kitchen door.

"Hey, maybe you should get more people to crash into your tractor!" Lois said and looked at Clark with a sarcastic smile.

"Clark, we can't accept his money," Martha said and Clark knew she was right.

Lois on the other hand became confused, but neither Martha nor Clark cared to explain. Clark just grabbed the hundred-dollar bill and disappeared out the door without another word.

"Hey!" he called out and the guy slowly turned around. He was waiting down by his car, or what was left of it anyway, with a backpack in his hands.

"Is there a problem?" he asked as Clark handed back the money.

"Well there's really no need to pay for the damages, trust me," Clark said, hoping the guy wouldn't ask any questions about it.

"Really? Thanks!" he said and gladly tucked away the hundred-dollar bill in his jeans pocket.

Clark couldn't help but glance down at the backpack; there was something sticking out and did look awfully like another hundred-dollar bill. The guy really didn't look as some kind of millionaire to Clark, and keeping that much money in a backpack just seemed a bit too strange.

"So… where are you headed?" Clark asked and quickly looked up at the guy again.

"Oh, I don't know. We'll see where the truck takes me," he said and shrugged.

"Must be kind of lonely living like that," Clark said.

"Well, it's not like I had any other choice. And if you don't mind, how about we don't talk about it?" the guy said and Clark decided not to argue with him about it.

Apparently he had hit a soft spot and if the guy had something to hide, he probably had his reasons for it. Something Clark could definitely relate to.

Before neither of the two had the chance to say another word, the tow truck luckily appeared further down on the small road. And not a moment too soon for Clark; he was already running very late as it was.

"Maybe I'll see you around. If not, then have a nice trip," Clark said and headed towards his red pickup.

The guy didn't even look at him and waited impatiently for the tow truck, holding onto his backpack. Clark knew for sure now that something was definitely up with him, but decided to leave it alone for the time being. He jumped into his pickup and looked down at his watch.

Even if he stepped on it, the first class would have ended by the time he arrived at the college.

"Clark, you better hurry!" Martha said as she and Lois walked past him. Clark sighed and started the car, watching the smashed up car slowly getting towed away.

"Hey, Smallville! Quit the day-dreaming and get out of here!" Lois shouted and got into the car next to Martha.

Clark snapped out of his daze and pulled out before they did. But that gnawing feeling that something wasn't right about the guy, who still remained nameless, didn't go away. And Clark knew somehow that he would run into him again. Maybe even sooner than he thought.

* * *

Even though there were three people working at the register, Lois had her hands full with orders that kept coming. Which had already caused her to forget to charge a guy for his coffee, not given enough change back and forget how to make a simple cappuccino.

So finally Martha decided Lois was in need of a break. Lois gladly took a seat at one of the available tables and let out a sigh of relief.

"Rough day?"

Lois looked up and was more than surprised to see the guy standing in front of her.

"Hey, stranger! You know, I think this calls for a proper introduction," Lois said and the guy sat down across from her with a smile on his face.

"So tell me your name," he said with an intrigued look and Lois laughed.

"Nice try! I asked first, buddy!" she said with an amusing smile.

"Right. Well, officially it's Bradin but all my close friends calls me Brad," he said.

"And let me guess; I'm a _very_ close friend?" Lois asked.

"Only if you want to be. And by the way, you still haven't answered my question," Brad said and Lois gave him a slightly confused look.

"I still don't know your name," he quickly added.

"Lois. Lois Lane," Lois said, sounding very formal, and smiled at him.

"Nice to meet you, Lois Lane," Brad said and after that the conversation took off.

Martha glanced over at the two from time to time, being pleased to see Lois relaxing for once. Ever since the meteor shower she had done her best to help out more around the farm and had started taking more shifts at the Talon, and it was becoming clear that Lois didn't deal well with stress after all.

After a while Lois reluctantly looked down at her watch and sighed. She had had a really great time with Brad but knew that she had to finish her shift anyways.

"Look, I gotta get back to work," she said and looked over at Brad.

"Yeah, I understand. So what time do you get off?" he asked and Lois laughed.

"You got spunk! I like that," she said and Brad smiled at her.

"Not many people do," he said.

"Well I'm not like other people, trust me," Lois said.

"So…?" Brad asked and Lois laughed again.

"So pick me up at 8:00 and don't be late," she said and winked at him before walking over to the register again.

She glanced over at Brad one last time before getting back to taking orders. Thankfully the rush was over by now and things were back to normal. Lois had no problems making a cappuccino this time and Martha was pleased to see that she was herself again.

* * *

As the cell phone started ringing, all the eyes turned and stared at Clark Kent. He smiled nervously and quickly exited the room, knowing that this was one phone call he definitely needed to answer.

"Yeah?" he said as he was standing outside in the hallway.

"_Okay so I checked out this guy you told me about and I gotta tell you; he's got quite a reputation_," Chloe said on the other end of the phone.

"You actually managed to get something on him without a name?" Clark asked.

"_Well I didn't really need one since it seems that he fits the description of a Bradin Smith who ran away from home in Metropolis four weeks ago_."

"He ran away? Why?" Clark asked, relieved that he at least knew the guy's name.

"_Doesn't say. But then it's not his parents who want him back; more like Summerholt actually. Seems like he's a patient there_."

"Does it say what kind of patient?" Clark asked, starting to walk towards the entrance.

At the moment he didn't care that the teachers would ask questions the next day, he just needed to find this Bradin Smith before somebody else did.

"_That's the really weird part; it doesn't. But they seem real eager to get him back either way_."

"Which isn't necessary a good thing. You know, I've never heard of this clinic before and it doesn't seem to be any information about them. This is really starting to sound pretty bad," Clark said and walked up to his car.

"_Yeah it does. So I'm gonna try and dig out some more useful information about this so-called clinic. And let me guess; you're going to find Brad?_"

"I'll try. But there's no telling where he could be. Probably long gone from Smallville by now," Clark said.

* * *

When Clark entered the Talon, things were really slow. But then again it was only ten minutes left until closing time. He looked around for his mother, but the only one present seemed to be Lois.

"Looking for me?" Lois called out from behind the register counter.

"Not really," Clark said and Lois laughed at this sarcastic comment.

"I take it things didn't go very well at school," she said and started wiping the glass counter clean. Clark let out a sigh and leaned towards the counter.

"Guess you could say that. So, where is…?"

"Your mom? That would be at home. She left about five minutes ago; I offered to close the place up," Lois interrupted without looking up at Clark.

"Really? Seems like you've been offering to do a lot of things lately," Clark said, and this time Lois looked up at him.

"And what's that suppose to mean?" she asked and gave him an annoyed look.

"Just that maybe you should try and take it easy," Clark said with a shrug.

"Well thanks for the advice but there's no need for me to take it easy; I'm just returning a favor," Lois said and put away the rag.

Instead she opened up the register. Clark watched as she carefully concentrated on counting the day's sum of money, but it didn't take long before she gave up and glared over at him instead.

"Do you mind? It's a little hard to focus with an audience!" she snapped and Clark couldn't help but smile. Which only made her more annoyed.

"Lois, there's no need to do that. I'm sure my mom has already done it anyway," he said and Lois glared at him for a while before putting back the money inside the register.

She disappeared for a moment behind the counter and got back up again with a book in her hand. Without even acknowledging Clark with a look, Lois started flipping through the pages and suddenly stopped.

"How do you know these things?" she asked and slammed the book shut.

"It's a gift I guess," Clark said with a smirk and shrugged.

"More like a curse," Lois muttered while putting back the book in its place.

"As always. By the way, will you be sleeping here tonight?" Clark asked and Lois stared at him, hoping that he would wipe that dumb look off his face.

"Yeah right because this place gives me such a warm and fuzzy feeling!" she said sarcastically and this time Clark smiled.

"Just checking. Who knows, I might even get to experience how it feels to sleep in my own bed again," he said and Lois started gathering her things.

"Well you can always sleep in the barn," she said with a smirk and in that moment the door opened up.

Clark turned around and was stunned to see Brad coming towards him. Lois put on her jacket and smiled sweetly at Brad.

"You're early!" she said, sounding very cheerfully all of the sudden.

"Yeah well, I was hoping to get out of here a bit sooner. Besides, I can see that the customers has left for the day," Brad said and suddenly looked over at Clark.

"Oh, don't mind him; he was just leaving! Weren't you, Clark?" Lois said and playfully punched Clark on the arm.

"Right," Clark said quietly, trying to hide his confusion, and headed towards the door. Lois quickly turned off the light before walking over to Brad.

"So where are we going?" she asked with a curious smile.

"You'll see," Brad said and glanced over at Clark.  


* * *

The front door opened with a quiet squeak, followed by the sound of heels hitting the wooden floor. Clark turned around in the sofa and slowly opened up his eyes. And just like he suspected, there was Lois trying to sneak in quietly.

"Do you mind?" he asked sarcastically and Lois froze immediately. She glanced over at him with a nervous smile and shut the door.

"Sorry! You just go back to sleep! Forget I'm even here!" she whispered and got out of her boots.

"Little late for that, don't you think? So I'm assuming you had a good time with Brad?" Clark asked and sat up.

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes I did," Lois said.

"And you didn't notice anything strange about him? At all?" Clark asked and Lois rolled her eyes with a dramatic sigh.

"He's no stranger than you, okay? Now, _I'm_ going to bed so excuse me!" she said and disappeared up the stairs before Clark had the chance to ask anything else.

Something about Brad just wasn't right but Clark knew better than to share this with Lois just yet. In spite all the times he pretty much hated her, Clark didn't want to see Lois getting hurt but he wasn't sure how to lay it out for her.

Which meant that he needed some very strong evidence and lots of help from the one person he trusted the most; Chloe.

* * *

**~ TO BE CONTINUED ~**


	2. Chapter 2

_**CHAPTER 2  
**_

* * *

The next morning Clark skipped breakfast and decided to leave for Metropolis after finishing his chores. Since Jonathan was still in Metropolis to check up on his heart problem, Clark knew it would be a good excuse to tell Martha before leaving. But even though she bought it, Lois didn't seem to believe him.

"So you're just gonna skip school _again_?" she asked and narrowed her eyes.

"Since when do you care if I skip school or not?" Clark asked, acting confused, trying to escape through the door as soon as possible.

But he didn't want Martha to become suspicious as well, and sadly she wouldn't leave the kitchen for some reason.

"I don't. But it's not very often you go to Metropolis unless…"

Lois trailed off and a smirk spread across her face, as if she had figured out the real reason. Clark swallowed hard and prayed that she hadn't figured it out, but knowing Lois it probably wouldn't take long before she did.

"Well I'd love to stay and chat, Lois, but I really gotta go. Bye!" Clark said with a nervous smile and did a quick wave before disappearing out the kitchen door.

Lois quickly followed him out onto the porch and watched him running towards his car.

"You can't keep running forever, Smallville!" Lois shouted from the porch.

Clark quickly got into the car, started the engine and within seconds Lois watched the dust as he drove off. She sighed and turned around, walking back into the kitchen. Martha stared at her with a confusion written all over her face and Lois froze.

"It's a little game of ours," she said with a nervous laugh.

"Right. Well, we better get going as well," Martha said and grabbed her things. Lois silently cursed Clark before walking out the kitchen door.

* * *

"Clark!" Chloe called out with a big grin and embraced Clark in a quick hug, before letting him inside.

"I hope I'm not too early? It's just that I need to be back before dinner or else they're gonna suspect something is up," Clark said and looked around the room.

"Lois already does," Chloe said as she took a seat in front of her laptop.

"What? How can you–"

"Please! This is Lois we're talking about! She called me just before you got here."

"What did you tell her?" he asked and sat down on the bed with a worried look.

"No need to worry; I denied everything. But you of all people should know that it's not exactly easy lying to her, because somehow she always manages to find out the truth. One cruel way or the other, trust me!" Chloe said and started typing away on the computer.

"I'm the one who lives with her, remember? So, did you manage to dig up something more on Brad?" Clark asked and walked over to Chloe.

"Yep. It seems that several banks here in Metropolis have been robbed almost daily in the last month. Every robbery is still unsolved and all together about $500.000 is missing," Chloe explained.

"Well it's kind of hard carrying around $500.000 in your backpack. He must have spend some of it or hidden it somewhere else," Clark said.

"Probably. But that's not even the weird part," Chloe said and started typing again.

After a few minutes a sequence from a surveillance camera was showing on the computer screen. The picture quality wasn't the best but Clark could see two women behind the register at a bank, talking to each other because their lips were moving and the way they interacted together.

"Look at the time in the right corner; 10:00 AM," Chloe said and pointed. Clark slowly nodded and Chloe pressed _Play_.

A few customers came and went, nothing out of the ordinarily. Until a man, dressed in black, walked over to the register. He exchanged a few words with one of the employees before being directed somewhere.

"Now, I don't know what that's all about, but after he walks off he also disappears out of sight for the cameras. And the next thing you know, these two women realizes that the bank have been robbed of $50.000" Chloe explained and pointed over at the time stamp down in the corner; 10:35 AM.

"When did this guy enter the bank?" Clark asked.

"According to this tape, at 10:30 AM and there's no evidence of him ever exiting the bank again. At least not through the main entrance, and that's the only possible way for him to exit since all the other doors are locked tight. Only the employees can access them," Chloe explained.

"Which bank is this from?" Clark asked and pulled up a chair next to Chloe.

"The first one; _Metropolis United_. And from I gather, all the other four banks have been robbed the exact same way. Their surveillance cameras didn't show anything new at all, which means either somebody altered the surveillance tapes or…"

Chloe trailed off and looked at Clark, both thinking the same thing.

"Or somebody froze time," Clark said.

"Yeah, somebody who has probably left Metropolis by now," Chloe said, although they both knew who could be the guilty one.

"Yeah, but why? I mean, if he actually does have the power to freeze time, there's no need for him to be on the run. Nobody can ever identify him as the robber and he can always hide the money for nobody to find," Clark said and Chloe leaned back in her chair and sighed.

"And we still don't have any real proof that could prove who the robber is. But something tells me the answer might lie at _Summerholt_," she said.

* * *

Chloe and Clark had luckily called ahead and booked an appointment with Dr. Palmer, whom had taken care of Brad while he was at the clinic.

"Ah, you must be Ms. Sullivan!" Dr. Palmer said with a polite smile from behind his desk when Chloe and Clark walked into the office.

They took a seat in the chairs in front of the desk and smiled nervously at the doctor.

"Yes I am. And this is my friend, Clark. Dr. Palmer, we're here to ask some questions," Chloe said, knowing it was best to get to the point right away.

"Yes I know. For some article, right?" Dr. Palmer asked and poured himself a glass of water. Chloe and Clark glanced at each other.

"Well, not technically," Chloe said and Dr. Palmer gave her a confused look.

"Not technically? Then what is this about?" he asked.

"Bradin Smith. Apparently he's a patient of yours," Clark said and Dr. Palmer sighed heavily before taking a swig of the water.

"You know I can't deny or verify that," he said.

"I know. But the thing is, we might know where you can find him," Chloe said.

"Really? And where would that be?" Dr. Palmer asked, playing dumb.

"First tell me why he was a patient here," Chloe said.

Clark glanced over at her. That wasn't what they had decided on right before arriving at the clinic, but he trusted that Chloe knew what she was doing. Otherwise things could end very badly for more people than just Brad.

"Well, this is a clinic, Ms. Sullivan. What do you think we treat people for in here? Brad suffered severe damage after his family died," Dr. Palmer explained.

"When was that?" Chloe asked, pushing for more information while it was possible.

"When the first meteors hit Smallville," Dr. Palmer said.

"And you didn't notice anything different about him?" Chloe asked.

"Exactly what are you hinting at, Ms. Sullivan?" Dr. Palmer snapped.

"Considering that plenty of people gained a few new 'abilities' after the first meteor shower, there's a great possibility that Brad did as well. So did he?" Chloe asked, ignoring the fact that Dr. Palmer was annoyed with her by now.

"I'm not allowed to discuss Brad's case any further, Ms. Sullivan," Dr. Palmer muttered.

"You already did, Doctor, so you might as go all the way. Before he perhaps hurts somebody else," Chloe said and Clark froze. He hadn't even considered that Lois' safety could be at stake, but now he was starting to get worried.

"Brad's power isn't dangerous. When I said that he had hurt himself and others, it wasn't with his newfound power," Dr. Palmer said and sighed.

"And what is his power, Dr. Palmer?" Chloe asked.

"Shimmering," Dr. Palmer said, getting out of his chair.

"Shimmering?" Chloe asked. Dr. Palmer walked over to them, slightly nodding.

"Dr. Palmer, we suspect that he also might have the power to freeze time. Do you know anything about that?" Clark asked and this time it was Dr. Palmer who froze. He stared at them without saying anything at first, making Clark believe that he did know something about it.

"I've answered all your questions already. Now where is Brad?" Dr. Palmer asked after a while. Clark and Chloe glanced at each other before standing up.

"You didn't answer _all_ of them," Chloe said, crossing her arms.

"Look, Brad needs to return back here as soon as possible," Dr. Palmer snapped.

"Dr. Palmer, your next appointment is on line one!" Dr. Palmer's secretary shouted through the closed door.

"Thank you, Nancy! Now, I'm sure you two will do the right thing in the end," Dr. Palmer said as he walked back to his desk and grabbed the phone.

Chloe and Clark slowly exited the room and were greeted by the secretary on their way to the elevators. The feeling that Dr. Palmer was hiding something grew stronger as Clark managed to hear who was on the phone with him.

* * *

"Are you sure?" Chloe asked for the second time and glanced at Clark.

"Well it's kind of hard mixing up the names, Chloe. How many Luthors do you know that lives in Metropolis?" Clark asked sarcastically and Chloe sighed.

"God, I was so hoping this wasn't going to lead back to them. Do you know which one it was? I mean, Lex has been acting really weird ever since the second meteor shower," Chloe said.

"I don't know. Dr. Palmer said 'Mr. Luthor' so it could be either Lex or Lionel," Clark said as Chloe stopped at a traffic light again.

"Well I think it's safe to say that this Mr. Luthor definitely has something to do with the treatment going on at _Summerholt_, and probably is the one who wants Brad back," Chloe said and Clark nodded along.

"Which means Brad might not be such a bad guy after all. Maybe we should try and talk to him?" he said.

"_We_? Clark, in case you have forgotten, I'm swamped with work for weeks to come," Chloe said and Clark sighed, annoyed with himself for actually forgetting this.

"Right. So I guess _I_ should talk to him then," he said and Chloe turned left after the light turned green.

"Well, from what I've heard maybe that's not such a good idea. If Brad doesn't hurt you then Lois sure will, and she'll definitely show no mercy," she said.

"That's a chance I have to take, Chloe. What if Brad _is_ dangerous? What happens then? We both know that Lois has a gift of sometimes saying the wrong things," Clark said and Chloe couldn't help but laugh at this.

"That's an understatement! But you don't really think he'll do anything to her, right? I mean, from what I've heard it sounds like he really likes her," Chloe said.

"Lois told you that?" Clark asked.

Chloe was quiet for a moment and glanced over at him. She knew he was also very concerned, but she also knew it was more behind his question. Every since Lois had come to Smallville and moved in with the Kent's, Chloe couldn't help but feel jealous from time to time.

Even though Lois and Clark seemed to fight almost all the time, there was something about their so-called friendship that made Chloe envy Lois sometimes.

"Well, she is my cousin. And just because I've moved from Smallville, doesn't mean we don't keep in touch. We talk on the phone and she sometimes comes over here," Chloe said and Clark felt stupid for asking such a dumb question.

"Right. So what has she said about Brad?" he asked hesitantly.

"Not much. I didn't even know his name actually until you called. She just mentioned this guy with no name and that they were hanging out together. If you ask me, it doesn't sound like the romance of the year exactly. And besides, Lois is known for sometimes being quite impulsive when it comes to relationships," Chloe explained.

"Why am I not surprised?" Clark said sarcastically and looked out the window.

"You seem to care an awfully lot about this, Clark," Chloe said.

"Well, why shouldn't I? Lois is my friend and she could be in danger," Clark said.

"We both know that Lois has no problem taking care of herself, and besides, Brad seems like a good guy. Who knows what Dr. Palmer has done to him at that clinic? He might even not have had any powers until he came there," Chloe said.

"I don't know, Chloe, I've got a bad feeling about him that I can't seem to shake," Clark sighed.

* * *

**~ TO BE CONTINUED ~**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

**A/N: **_Not to seem pathetic but if there is someone out there actually reading this fan fic, reviews would be greatly appreciated. It's not that I will remove the story unless it doesn't get reviews but it would help me to figure out if the story is good or bad. I wrote this during Season 5 so hence the old storyline but due to the series finale in May I wanna get this uploaded before then. I'm planning on updating with a chapter every third or fourth day while writing on my latest Clois fan fiction. So, if there's anything you like or dislike, please feel free to say so without being cruel. ;)_

* * *

Lois set out the plates on the table while Martha and Jonathan were in the living room, talking together in low voices. It was almost time for dinner and Lois was tempted to call Clark's cell phone, but got interrupted at the sound of a car pulling up in the driveway.

She peered out the kitchen window and saw Clark getting out of his pickup. Within seconds Lois was outside on the porch and did a dramatic wave at him with a fake smile on her face.

"Ah! I see you found your way back! Did you have a nice time with your dad?" Lois shouted and Clark nodded as he came walking towards her.

"Yeah. Why?" he asked nervously.

"So did the doctor say when he would get to come home again?" Lois asked in a high-pitch voice, still with a fake smile.

"Lois, what's going on?" Clark asked and started to get suspicious.

"I don't know what you are talking about!" Lois said and shrugged.

"You're very weird, has anybody ever told you that?" Clark said and walked past Lois, into the kitchen.

He froze immediately when he saw Martha and Jonathan staring back at him. Lois closed the kitchen door behind her and slowly leaned in over his shoulder with a devious smirk.

"Oh and by the way; your dad is back. Well, you guys must have some catching up to do so I'll just be upstairs if you need me!" Lois said and headed for the stairs.

"Thank you, Lois," Martha said and Lois waved at Clark before disappearing upstairs.

Martha and Jonathan turned to Clark again, waiting for some kind of explanation.

"Is it true that you told your mother that you were coming to see me in Metropolis?" Jonathan asked and Clark nodded, trying to find the right words.

"Look, I'm sorry that I lied. But I didn't want Lois to know the real reason why I went to Metropolis," Clark quickly explained, hoping Lois didn't hear him.

"And why did you go there?" Jonathan said.

"Because I think Brad has got some kind of power. Chloe and I visited his doctor, and apparently Brad's family was killed in the first meteor shower," Clark said.

"Clark, you can't investigate people just because you don't like them," Martha said.

"But that's not why. Five banks has been robbed in Metropolis in the past five weeks, which is about the time when Brad escaped from _Summerholt _and it seems that Mr. Luthor is involved," Clark said, lowering his voice.

"Lionel?" Martha asked and Clark shrugged.

"That's just it; I don't know. But I clearly heard Dr. Palmer, Brad's doctor, talking to a Mr. Luthor on the phone as we were leaving," he said.

"Well, that does _not_ sound good, but you still shouldn't have lied. Clark, you don't know what's going on here. If a Luthor is involved, it's never a good thing. So I suggest that you stay out of it for now. Doesn't seem like this Brad is doing anybody any harm," Jonathan said and Clark sighed.

He knew there was no point in arguing with them right now, because he still didn't have any real evidence yet.

* * *

After dinner, Clark quickly snuck away to the barn to clear his head. He wouldn't stop investigating Brad until he had enough evidence that proved whether he was guilty or not.

"Thought I might find you here!"

Clark turned around and was surprised to see Lex walking up the stairs. They hadn't spoken for weeks and Clark wasn't very comfortable around Lex anymore, which made him even more suspicious about this visit.

"What are you doing here?" Clark asked. He suspected that Lex probably knew about him and Chloe visiting Dr. Palmer, but refused to bring it up unless Lex did.

"I haven't seen you in weeks. Started to think you might be avoiding me," Lex said.

"Well I've been kind of busy with school. College, you know. They give you tons of homework," Clark said.

"Right. So it has nothing to do with what happened four months ago?" Lex asked.

"Lex, I know you didn't come all the way over here to talk about something that happened in the past. We've been through this before," Clark said. Lex sighed and leaned against the railing.

"You're right, Clark, I didn't come all the way over here to talk about that. I wanted to ask you about a certain Bradin Smith, who just happens to be a patient over at _Summerholt_ in Metropolis. Apparently Dr. Palmer got a visit from a Ms. Sullivan and her friend Clark," he said.

Clark froze, even though he wasn't actually surprised since Lex was getting more and more predictable these days.

"Well, Chloe was doing an article about the special treatment over at _Summerholt_," Clark said nervously.

"Really? Because according to Dr. Palmer, there isn't any article. It was just something Chloe and you came up with as a reason to see Dr. Palmer," Lex said and crossed his arms, looking very smug.

This was truly not a side that Clark liked at all.

"Depends on whose truth you decide to believe, Lex. And besides, why are you so interested in _Summerholt_ and Bradin Smith?" Clark asked.

"I'm not. But it seems that my father is on the other hand. Apparently he's been working quite closely with Dr. Palmer for years, following the doctor's work on patients such as Bradin Smith," Lex explained.

"And what kind of patients is that?" Clark asked.

He knew all too well how obsessed Lionel Luthor was when it came to the abilities caused by the meteor rocks, but he also knew that Lex's obsession wasn't any less of a problem for him.

"I thought you already knew that, Clark," Lex said and Clark played dumb.

"No, I really don't," he said and shrugged. Lex stared at him for a while in silence.

"Very well. For your sake I'm hoping you're telling the truth, Clark," he finally said and started walking down the stairs.

"Is that a threat, Lex?" Clark asked and Lex stopped dead in his tracks, slowly turning around and looking up at Clark.

"Of course not. In spite of everything that has happened you're still my friend, Clark. I'm just warning you; my father can be quite ruthless. Especially if you're standing in his way," Lex said and continued down the stairs.

Clark watched as he slowly walked out of the barn. Moments later the silver Mercedes quickly drove off and Clark was left wondering if Lex had actually been concerned for his or Clark's sake.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of somebody else walking up the stairs. Clark turned around and suppressed a sigh when he saw Lois.

Unlike before when he had arrived home, she looked anything but smug. Dinner had been surprising quiet, even with the occasionally joke from her since she couldn't stand uncomfortable silences. And Clark just knew that she knew something was up.

"Care to tell me what that was about?" Lois asked as she walked over to the couch.

"What do you mean?" Clark asked and walked over to his telescope.

"You know, you really should work on getting your lies straight," Lois said and leaned back in the couch, impatiently waiting for an answer.

"Maybe you could help me with that?" Clark said sarcastically.

"Cute! Didn't think you had it in you," Lois said and stared at him for a while. She didn't do waiting very good either.

"So how come you're not out with Brad?" Clark asked suddenly and turned around.

"Not that it's any of your business, but he's busy tonight which is fine by me since I got an early shift tomorrow," Lois said with a shrug.

Clark got the feeling she wasn't telling him the truth, but ignored it at the moment. Even though they might be considered friends at this point, he was probably the last person that Lois would open up to about actual meaningful things.

"Lois, are you okay?" Clark asked, even though he had tried not to.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" Lois asked with a confused smile and stood up.

She walked over to the telescope and glanced up at the dark evening sky.

"Well it's just that you seem very quiet," Clark said and Lois smiled.

"Your concern is touching, but I'm fine. Although I must say, that was probably the quietest dinner I've ever been to. And I grew up with a General for a father!" Lois said with a sarcastic laugh and looked over at Clark.

"Yeah, well, we don't do much talking during dinner. I realize how that must be a real challenge for _you _though," Clark said and Lois gave him a warning look.

"Let's not go overboard with the whole sarcastic-farm-boy-thing, okay? Because it doesn't always suit you," she said and Clark couldn't help but feel guilty.

Lois did have her fine moments where she for once didn't get on his nerves, but the sarcastic comments just slipped out of both of them sometimes.

"Right. Sorry about that," Clark said and Lois shrugged

"So, I guess I'll just leave you to it then. Night!" she suddenly blurted out and forced on a smile before heading for the stairs.

"Lois, it's only 8:30," Clark said with a confused look and Lois sighed, slowly turning around at the top of the stairs.

"Yeah, well it's not like there's much to do around here. Especially not in the evening so I might as well crawl into bed," she said, and Clark could tell that she seemed disappointed.

It could be because of Brad, but truth was that Lois hadn't really adjusted to the life on the farm yet. She was the big city girl who had traveled the world, and now suddenly she was living on a farm in Kansas.

"Oh, I don't know. Smallville isn't all that bad; you just wait and see," Clark said and couldn't help but smile at her, which only confused Lois.

"Right. Well I'll just go and do that in my sleep," she said and quickly disappeared down the stairs before Clark managed to say anything else.

* * *

The sound of an alarm clock made Lois roll out of bed with a loud thud. She unwillingly opened her eyes and noticed that it was her own alarm clock that made all the noise. With a loud groan, Lois got up from the floor and quickly turned off the alarm clock. It was only 7:00 AM and she could already hear noises from downstairs.

"There better be pancakes!" Lois muttered as she stepped outside of the room in a multicolored checkered pajamas and white bunny slippers.

The hair was a complete mess and she was sure that she had bags under her eyes considering the irregular night of sleep she'd had.

"Good morning, Lois!" Martha said with a cheerful smile as she saw Lois coming down the stairs.

Jonathan was reading the newspaper by the kitchen table and Clark was too busy consuming his breakfast to even notice Lois.

"Well I don't know about that but it sure does smell wonderful!" Lois said and a smile spread across her face when she saw the plate with pancakes on the kitchen table.

"Was that you I heard from upstairs?" Clark asked without looking up. Lois took a seat at the table with a plate in her hand, glaring at him.

"No talking at the table," she muttered and helped herself to some of the pancakes.

Clark looked up at her with a smirk on his face. Lois ignored him, although he could tell she was getting more annoyed by the minute.

"I take it you didn't sleep well after all?" Clark asked while Lois poured herself a glass of juice, still ignoring him.

Martha sat down by the table and cleared her throat. Clark continued eating his breakfast and Lois smiled at Martha from across the table.

"Well I guess I better get to work," Jonathan said suddenly and finished his coffee.

"You promise me you will be careful?" Martha asked and Jonathan sighed.

Clark looked up and Lois stopped eating her pancakes. They had all been very concerned about Jonathan after the second meteor shower four months earlier.

"Of course," he finally said and forced on a smile before walking out the kitchen door. Lois and Clark looked at each other in silence for a moment.

"Clark, you better finish that breakfast," Martha said and walked out of the kitchen.

"You heard the woman; better start eating!" Lois said and inhaled the wonderful smell of the fresh pancakes with a big grin on her face.

"I heard the first time, Lois," Clark muttered and stood up. He removed his plate and glass from the table in silence, and Lois could tell that he was bothered.

"He's gonna be all right, you know," she blurted out and Clark turned around.

"Yeah I do," he said and Lois smiled at him, although it wasn't a very happy smile. But it was enough for Clark to quit worrying about it for the time being at least.

"Your pancakes are getting cold," he said with a teasing smile and walked out of the kitchen.

Lois looked down at the pancakes on her plate and realized that she had lost her appetite. Which didn't happen very often and especially not when it came to pancakes. She sighed heavily and got off her chair with the plate in her hand.

"Great. What else can go wrong today?" she whispered to herself as she left her plate on the kitchen counter, and then headed for the stairs.

When she was upstairs on her way to Clark's room, which she had lived in too long already, she got the uncomfortable feeling of being watched. She stopped dead in her tracks for a moment and glanced around; very well knowing that she was alone.

"Oh, get real!" she muttered and walked into Clark's room, quickly closing the door behind her.

After catching her breath and telling herself that she was starting to hallucinate, Lois started searching through her suitcase to try and find some clean clothes to wear for work. Finally she decided to wear jeans and a simple tank top, mostly because the rest of her clothes were in the every growing laundry pile in the corner of the room. She groaned as she took one quick look at the pile of clothes.

"I really gotta remember to do the laundry one of these days," she mumbled to herself.

Suddenly there was a muffled thud from inside the closet and Lois quickly turned around. Nobody else had gone upstairs and she had definitely not seen anybody else enter Clark's room, let alone the closet. She listened for any other sounds but now it was dead quiet again.

A part of her wanted to ignore it, but it was the curious part of her that made her walk over to the closet and rip the door open. The only thing that was out of order was some clothes that had apparently fallen down on the floor. Lois sighed and cursed herself for suddenly being so easily spooked before closing the door.

* * *

"_Hello?_"

"Hey cuz!" Lois said and stopped to look in the window at the antique store.

"_Lois! Hi! To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?_" Chloe said and Lois laughed.

"Just wanted to check in and see if my little cousin is behaving, that's all!" she said and continued walking down the street.

"_Right. Why am I having such a hard time believe that's all? It doesn't happen have something to do with a certain Clark Kent? Lois, like I told you the last time you called…_"

"This is not about Clark Kent! Why do you always assume that? Can't a girl enjoy talking to her cousin? Especially if the cousin has moved to Metropolis while she's still stuck here amongst all the cows!" Lois said with a dramatic hand gesture.

"_Lois, you might fool other people but you sure don't fool me. Investigating reporter, remember? So what's really up?_"

"Okay! You got me; I didn't actually call to see how you were doing. It's just that Clark has been acting strange lately," Lois said hesitantly and crossed the street, hearing Chloe sighing.

"_And you only started to notice this now after living with him for almost a whole year? Lois, trust me when I say that it's no use trying to figure him out. Clark Kent will forever be an enigma wrapped up in a mystery for everybody, so just leave it_."

"What's with the attitude? Is everything alright?" Lois asked and stopped when she realized she was already outside of the _Talon_.

"_Yeah, I'm fine! Just got a lot of stuff to do this week. College, you know_."

"Right. That's one of the few things I learned over at _Met U_," Lois said.

"_Well at least you know how I feel then! But how are things going over there? With work and everything?_"

"Let's just say that work is not all what it's cracked up to be. Consider yourself lucky still being in school!" Lois said and suddenly spotted Brad across the street, staring back at her.

She was just about to wave at him when he disappeared amongst the crowd of people.

"_Earth to Lois!_"

Lois quickly snapped out of her daze at the sound of Chloe calling out.

"Sorry. It's just… sometimes I wonder if I'm not going crazy," she said and looked across the street again, trying to spot Brad somewhere in the crowd but he was gone.

If it has been Brad she had seen in the first place. But it must have been; he had stared straight at her so it couldn't just been her imagination.

"_What? Lois, are you okay?_"

"Why do people keep asking me that? I'm fine! Look, I better get going now; my break ended ten minutes ago. I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Bye!" Lois said and hung up before walking into the _Talon_.

She suddenly froze when she noticed who was sitting by the counter. The same person she had seen just a moment earlier; Brad.

"Brad! But how…?"

Lois just stared at Brad, not being able to even finish the sentence. This was evidence enough that she was officially going mad.

"Wow. I didn't think you would be _this_ excited to see me," Brad said and laughed.

"Neither did I," Lois said with a forced smile and walked behind the counter.

As she was putting on the apron she noticed that Brad was staring at her. It was as if he could see right through her and it wasn't a very comfortable feeling.

"So what's up?" Lois asked, doing her best to keep a straight face.

But before Brad managed to say anything, a line was already forming at the register. Lois gave him an apologetic smile and started taking orders. From time to time she could still feel his eyes on her, but she didn't bother to say anything. It was probably just her, getting paranoid too.

Although it still felt creepy, knowing it was almost as if Brad was obsessively watching her every move.

* * *

**~ TO BE CONTINUED ~ **


	4. Chapter 4

******CHAPTER 4**  


* * *

It was dark outside by the time the last costumer left the _Talon_ and Lois sighed heavily, relieved that the shift had finally ended. Luckily Martha had given her the following day off, so she could finally sleep in. Something she had been doing constantly before she moved in with the Kent's.

"Ready to go?" Brad suddenly asked and Lois looked up.

"Go… _where_?" she asked with a confused look and put on her jacket.

"We made plans for tonight, remember?" Brad asked and Lois slowly shook her head. She grabbed her car keys and walked out from behind the register.

"No, we didn't. Brad, I'm sorry but I just planned on heading home. Gotta get up early for Metropolis tomorrow. I'm sure I must have told you in between all the lattes," Lois said, knowing that wasn't true. She hadn't had a chance to even say two words to Brad in hours, but sometimes a white lie sounded better than the truth.

"Oh. Well how about a quick coffee then?" Brad asked and Lois did a dramatic hand gesture around the room.

"I work in a coffee shop. Look, Brad, I'm sorry but tonight you will have to fly solo because I got a date with the TV," Lois said and turned off the light.

"Don't you mean Clark Kent?" Brad asked in a low voice and Lois turned around with a confused look on her face.

"Excuse me? I wouldn't go out with Clark Kent even if he were the last man on Earth!" she said and started walking towards the door.

When she realized that Brad still wasn't moving, she sighed and quickly turned around and walked back again.

"What part of this isn't getting through to you? It's time for you to leave now, because I _really_ need to close the place up, okay? How about I give you a call tomorrow?" Lois asked, getting more annoyed with Brad.

"No problem. I just gotta do something first," he said with a shrug.

"And what's that?" Lois asked sarcastically and an evil smile spread across Brad's face. Before Lois had the chance to say anything else, time had stopped.

* * *

"Lois, where have you been? We were getting worried about you!" Martha said with a concerned look when Lois walked in through the kitchen door.

She looked down at her watch and realized that she was over an hour late.

"Sorry. Guess I lost track of time," she mumbled and took off her jacket. Clark exchanged confused looks with Jonathan and Martha.

"Lois, are you all right?" he asked and Lois stared at him for a while, trying to find the right words.

"I don't know. The weirdest thing just happened," she said and took a seat at the kitchen table, still trying to remember.

"What? At the _Talon_?" Martha asked and Lois slowly nodded.

"Yeah. It's really weird because I don't know _what_ happened. The last thing I remember is talking to Brad and then… it's all just a blur," she said and sighed.

Jonathan and Martha glanced over at Clark, and he knew he had to tell Lois what he had found out about Brad in Metropolis.

"Look, Lois, I might know what happened," he said and Lois gave him a confused look, seeming even more lost than before.

"What? How could you know when _I_ don't even know myself?" she asked.

"Because when I was in Metropolis, I went to see Dr. Palmer who is in fact Brad's doctor at the _Summerholt _clinic. After the first meteor shower Brad showed signs of having powers and one of them might be to freeze time," Clark explained hesitantly and Lois stared at him, completely stunned.

"Lois, did you hear what I just said? Brad probably froze you, which explains why you don't remember anything and the time just flew by. And if I'm right, then there probably won't be any money left in the register tomorrow," Clark continued and Martha sighed.

But Lois didn't make a sound; she just kept staring at Clark. During her time in Smallville she had experienced some pretty weird things, and she had met people with powers due to meteor rocks before but this time it was different.

"So, Brad _froze_ me? And then he robbed the _Talon_? While I was… _frozen_?" she asked and got out of the chair.

"Pretty much, yeah," Clark said with a sigh and Lois started pacing back and forth.

"Lois, are you all right? You look a little pale. Perhaps it's best if you go upstairs and get some rest," Martha said but Lois didn't seem to be hearing her.

"That _bastard_! When I get my hands on him he's gonna wish he was never born!" Lois cried out, and headed up the stairs before even Clark had the chance to react. They listened to her stomping footsteps and finally the door slammed shut.

"Clark, you better make sure that she doesn't find Brad before you do, because if she does… well we don't even know how dangerous Brad really is," Jonathan said and Clark nodded.

He didn't want to imagine what could happen if Lois found Brad first, but he had a feeling that it would probably be Brad finding Lois before then.

* * *

The next day Lois was acting as if yesterday had never occurred. She had even attempted on making lunch but luckily Martha managed to talk her out of it, which Clark was very grateful for. Even though a part of him liked seeing Lois back to her old annoying self, he wanted to talk to her about Brad.

Lois had just finished her breakfast and was all set to leave for Metropolis, when Clark decided to take the chance and have a little chat with her.

"Hey, Lois," he said, trying to sound casual. Lois put on her jacket while staring at him, waiting for the rest of the sentence.

"Yeah?" she asked while checking the pockets for her car keys.

"About yesterday; I just hope that you don't go after Brad. I mean, we hardly know anything about him and he could be dangerous. Besides, I'm sure the police will catch him soon enough," Clark said hesitantly, not believing a word of it himself.

"Thanks for the pep-talk but I'm kind of in a rush. Chloe's got a lot of exams this week so we only got today to get together," Lois said with a teasing smile and opened the kitchen door.

"So you promise me you'll leave it alone?" Clark asked and Lois slowly turned around with a questionable look on her face.

"Look, that bastard is gonna pay one way or the other for what he's done," Lois snapped and marched out the door.

"Lois, wait!" Clark called out as he came running after her. Lois walked over to her car and unlocked it, completely ignoring him.

"_Hey_!" Clark snapped and she quickly turned around.

"Just mind your own business, Smallville!" Lois said and got in the car, slamming the door shut right in front of Clark.

As she started the car engine, Clark tried to think of something to do to stop her but he knew it wouldn't help. So he just stood there, watching her speed off down the road.

* * *

"Whoa! You're here early! I didn't expect you for another hour!" Chloe said with a surprised look and Lois gave her a quick hug, before walking into the room.

"Yeah, well, we haven't seen each other in _weeks_. Besides, Clark is getting on my nerves more than usual," Lois muttered and felt the anger bubbling up again. But she quickly suppressed it and looked around the room.

"Again? What did he do this time?" Chloe asked and sighed heavily.

"Oh, just put his nose in other people's business as always. You know, this room could use some serious decorating! It's got this whole hospital look about it and trust me, that's not a good thing!" Lois said and did a hand gesture at the pale grey walls.

Chloe walked over to the computer and decided to ignore that last comment.

"Let me guess; it has something to do with Brad," she said and Lois gave her a suspicious look.

"Clark wasn't the only one who visited _Summerholt_ the other day. You were with him, weren't you? I pretty much expect _him_ to lie about something like that but not _you_, Chloe! You know, this whole 'Protecting-Lois-Thing' was kind of cute at first but now it's starting to really annoy me. Why do people suddenly assume I'm incapable of taking care of myself? Brad is _my_ problem which means _I_ will deal with him," Lois said and started pacing back and forth again.

"Lois, don't be like that. How many times haven't you lied to me? And I have forgiven you _every_ time, which is a lot!" Chloe said, trying to force on a smile.

"Oh, this is totally different! This isn't some little innocent lie about taking your doll, which I _didn't_ by the way, this is about you and Clark having the need to investigate people, and then lying about it! Whatever happened to doing things together?" Lois cried out with a dramatic hand gesture. Chloe sighed and turned around.

"Lo, slow down. I promised Clark not to say anything in case it turned out Brad was clean, which apparently he's not. So it seems that Clark was right… _again_," Chloe said and Lois grunted.

"I know! God, he's gonna be impossible to live with after this!" she said and fell backwards onto the bed. Chloe walked over to her and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Look, how about we go out and make a day of it? Just like the old days? Huh?" Chloe asked while nudging Lois.

"Why not? I could sure use some fun," she said and got off the bed.

"That's the spirit!" Chloe said cheerfully, getting all excited.

"Oh, you have seen nothing yet," Lois said with a mischievous smile.

* * *

"Okay just so you know; this wasn't what I meant when I suggested we should go out. The cinema and the restaurant were just fine, but this… well, this is not really my thing," Chloe whispered to Lois as they were standing in line outside of the nightclub.

"I know, which is why I figured we should make it your thing," Lois said deviously and the line started moving again.

"How thoughtful of you, Lois," Chloe said and raised an eyebrow at Lois' outfit.

"You can thank me later!" Lois said with a perky smile and Chloe sighed.

"Lois, why are we _really _here?" she asked and suddenly they were standing in front of the bouncer. Chloe froze up but Lois just smiled at them, flashing her ID.

"You're in; as long as you leave your little friend outside," he said.

Lois' smile disappeared and Chloe knew this whole thing could get pretty ugly.

"Come on, Lois, let's just go," Chloe whispered and managed to drag Lois away with her before things got out of control.

"Any suggestions?" Lois asked as they were walking down the street, passing a lot of other nightclubs.

Chloe glanced around and wished that she could think of something, but nothing came to mind.

"I'm afraid not. And even though I might regret asking this; do you have any?" she asked.

"I do, but they all involve being twenty-one so that's out of the question. Well, I guess we could always rent a movie or whatever. Still beats being stuck in Smallville with the cattle and Clark," Lois said and Chloe laughed.

"And here I thought you were such a happy family!" she said and Lois gave her a warning look, but couldn't help smiling.

"Funny. Almost as funny as Clark…"

Lois immediately grew quiet as she saw a familiar face across the street; Brad.

"Lois?" Chloe asked and looked across the street, seeing the same person that Lois did.

This time he hadn't just disappeared in a blink of an eye, which made Lois even surer that she hadn't been imagining things yesterday. Brad was staring at her and suddenly started moving into the dark alley. Lois started crossing the street and Chloe quickly followed her, knowing it was useless do anything else.

Soon they were walking down a dark alley but Lois didn't seem to take notice, although Chloe did on the other hand. She looked around; getting chills down her back knowing what kind of dangerous people could be hiding out in the dark.

"What the…? _Brad_!" Lois called out and looked around, finding herself staring right at a brick wall. No Brad anywhere to be found. She turned around and faced Chloe.

"That's weird. I mean, he couldn't just have…" Chloe trailed off and her eyes grew wide.

She now remembered what Dr. Palmer had said about Brad's power. At least the one he had before arriving at _Summerholt_.

"Hey, I know that look! What is it, Chloe?" Lois asked and Chloe bit her lower lip, hesitating for a minute.

"Remember how Clark mentioned Brad having powers due to the meteor shower? Well, the power to freeze time is just one of them. That one he probably got after being committed to _Summerholt_ while this other one… well, he got after being exposed to meteor rocks," Chloe explained and Lois gave her an impatient look.

"_And_? How did he manage to get away again?" she asked.

"Right. Well, see, Brad has the power of teleportation. It means that…"

"Wait, are you telling me that he just disappeared into thin air?" Lois asked and pointed at the brick wall over her shoulder when her eyes fixed on Chloe.

"Pretty much. Which is probably a good thing after all. Lois, you can't just run off after him. What did you expect to do if you actually caught him?" Chloe asked.

"You don't usually think these things through, Chloe. I wasn't about to let him get away but apparently he had a small advantage," she said and glanced over at the brick wall, still finding it hard to believe Brad actually passed through it. But it also explained a few things that had happened over the past few days.

"Come on, let's get out of here. I'll promise you that we will catch him. Just not tonight," Chloe said suddenly and they slowly walked out of the alley together.

Lois glanced over her shoulder, hoping that he would reappear again but nothing happened. The alley remained empty but Lois was more determined than ever to get a hold of Brad. Even if it meant doing it all by herself; something she was used to.

* * *

"So we know for a fact that he robbed the _Talon_ and those five banks in Metropolis. My guess is that he will probably strike once more in Smallville, considering that nobody will ever figure out he did it," Chloe said while Lois stared at the surveillance footage from _Metropolis United_.

"Right. Well, the only other thing worth robbing in Smallville would be the bank. Not that I would call that a bank but it probably holds an interesting sum of money," she said and Chloe nodded along.

"Exactly. Although for all we know he could already have robbed it. There's really no way telling when he will do it… but I think I know how we can get him," she said and looked at Lois with a devious smile.

"Oh, you wanna play it that way all of the sudden? Sure, just sacrifice me; your own cousin! Hey, why don't we throw in a 'Two-For-One' special?" Lois said sarcastically.

"Quit being such a drama queen. Besides, if anybody is capable of catching Brad then it's you. He likes you and he thinks you like him too," Chloe said and Lois suddenly looked away.

At first Chloe didn't take notice of this but when she realized Lois didn't say anything, she glanced over at her cousin.

"Lois…?" she said and Lois turned around facing her, flashing a big innocent grin. Which was never a good thing because that only meant she had done something that was anything _but_ innocent; Chloe of all people knew this.

"Let me guess; you and your big mouth?" Chloe said sarcastically and sighed.

"Hey, it's not my fault that the guy can't handle rejection! Besides, how was I supposed to know that he would freeze me and then rob the place?" Lois said and Chloe sighed again.

"I should've known. Okay, well, this doesn't have to mean he hates you. Especially not after considering last tonight's stalking," Chloe said.

"I would say that's a pretty safe bet. Now, how do you plan on us getting even close to him? I mean, he might not _hate_ me but he definitely knows how I feel and considering what he did at the _Talon_, I would say he's being cautious," Lois said.

"That's one way of describing it. Okay, how about we…"

Chloe suddenly stopped talking and Lois stared at the computer screen for a few seconds before turning her attention to her cousin.

"Uhm, Chloe? _Hello_?" she said and couldn't help but smile as she waved her hand in front of Chloe's face. Her eyes stayed opened, not even blinking. Lois quickly stopped smiling and got out of her chair with a terrified look on her face.

"I thought she would never shut up!"

Lois looked over at the doorway and saw Brad standing there with a smirk.

"What are you doing in here? _How_ did you even get in here?" Lois asked, moving sideways towards the bed where her jacket was thrown; her cell phone still inside it.

"It's not there anymore," Brad said coldly and Lois stopped.

"Well, we are just full of surprises today, aren't we?" Lois said sarcastically, trying to remain perfectly calm. But in fact, she was close to panicking.

"Just like you were two days ago. So tell me, Lois, how does it feel being rejected?" Brad asked and moved away from the doorway, towards Lois.

"Look, if you came here to get some sort of apology or whatever, then you might as well teleport back to where you came from! It's not my fault that things didn't work out for us! And for your own sake you better return what you stole from the _Talon_," Lois said and Brad started laughing, which gave Lois the chills.

"I see that a certain person has informed you about my 'abilities' but no, I won't go away. This time I won't just disappear," he said.

"_This_ time? How many other times has there been?"

"Quite a few. And every time I've nearly been caught. But I gotta say; you're the first person I've not managed to fool," he said, looking impressed.

"I'm honored. Now, unfreeze her," Lois said and pointed over at Chloe.

"Nice try. But I'm afraid she will remain frozen for a while," Brad said and looked over at Chloe for a moment.

That's when Lois made a run for the door, but like expected, Brad beat her to it. He appeared in front of the door and Lois was speechless. She slowly took a step backwards, realizing that she was trapped.

* * *

**~ TO BE CONTINUED ~ **


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

* * *

As Clark walked out of the barn, he was surprised to see Lex standing outside.

"Checking up on me, Lex?" Clark asked sarcastically.

"Of course not. But I was hoping you had done some thinking since last time we talked. I know you probably don't believe me, Clark, but I'm trying to help you. My father already knows about Bradin being missing and that you might know where he is, so there's only a matter of time before you will be getting a visit from him. Now, I'm hoping to find Bradin first and be able to help him," Lex said.

"Well I hate to disappoint you, Lex, but I don't know where Brad is. And how can I be so sure that you wanna help him? Your father might as well get a hold of him anyway," Clark said.

"I will see to it that my father won't find out anything about it. Now, from what my sources tell me, Brad has been spending quite a lot of time at the _Talon_. It couldn't possibly have something to do with a certain Lois Lane?" Lex asked.

"I got the feeling you already know the answer to that, Lex. So your sources haven't informed you where Brad is?" Clark asked and Lex slowly shook his head.

"I wouldn't be here if they had. Now, I was hoping I could have a chat with Lois. Do you happen to know where _she_ is?" he asked.

"In Metropolis, visiting Chloe. And she doesn't really talk about Brad," Clark said.

"So I'm assuming you've already tried?" Lex asked and Clark nodded.

"You can always try but I don't think she will give you anything," Clark said with a shrug. A smirk spread across Lex's face and he opened the car door.

"We'll see about that. Goodbye, Clark," Lex said and got into the car, quickly starting the engine.

Clark had a strong feeling that Lex's reasons as to finding Brad wasn't much more innocent than Lionel's was. He headed back towards the house as Lex's silver Mercedes drove off down the road. Just as Clark reached for the doorknob, his cell phone began ringing. He glanced down at the caller I.D. before answering.

"Chloe?" he asked, a bit surprised to hear from her so soon.

"_Clark, you better get over here quick! It's Brad… I think he's got Lois!_" Chloe shouted at the other end and Clark stopped dead in his tracks.

"Chloe, calm down. I'll be right there," Clark said and hung up.

* * *

When there was a knock at the door, Chloe nearly jumped out of her skin. She hadn't expected Clark to arrive _that_ quickly, even though considering his super human speed. She rushed over and opened up the door, relieved to see Clark's face. Chloe quickly let him in and shut the door behind her.

"What happened here?" Clark asked as he stared at the mess in the room.

"I'm asking myself the same thing, believe me! One minute I'm talking to Lois about Brad and the next I'm all by myself; no Lois anywhere. And judging from this mess I think it's pretty safe to say that Brad was here. Explains why I don't remember anything," Chloe said, gesturing at all the things spread out across the floor.

"He must've frozen you. Luckily it doesn't seem to last very long," Clark said.

"Clark, the guy has the power to freeze time! _Time_! How can we even compete with that?" she cried out.

Clark suddenly saw Lois' jacket lying on the bed and came to think of something.

"Chloe, calm down," he said. "Do you know if Lois' cell phone is still here?"

Chloe took a deep breath, calming herself down before answering.

"I've already checked and from what I can tell, it's gone. Along with Lois."

"Right, so how about you try tracking it? Hopefully they brought it with them for some reason," Clark said. Chloe nodded silently and took a seat at her computer.

"I sure hope so. For Lois' sake," she said and started typing away.

* * *

Lois started getting the feeling back in her arms and legs again, but she found that she still couldn't move her arms and her legs felt like jelly. Everything was just a blur and all she could hear was inconsistent murmur.

She began trying to focus her eyes on the hardwood floor she was standing on, her steady vision slowly returning. After a few minutes she was able to make out the surroundings and that's when she noticed Brad staring back at her.

"Welcome back," he said with a smirk and Lois glared at him.

"What are we doing _here_?" she asked and Brad took a few steps closer.

"Waiting. I'm sure Clark will be back soon enough," he said, looking very smug.

Lois tried to back up as he got closer but she was stuck. She glanced over her shoulder at the wooden pole, realizing that she was tied up and silently cursed Brad.

"Well, do you mind waiting _outside_ then? Because I have this thing about not being around people who kidnaps me. _After_ they've lied to me!" she snapped and gave Brad an evil glare, but it didn't do any good.

"Ah, you really do have a way with words. Too bad it won't help you now," Brad said and disappeared.

Lois sighed and started trying to wiggle out of the ropes. She knew there was a slim chance that she would succeed before Brad returned, but she refused to be standing there like a damsel in distress.

"I'm so gonna get him for this…!" she muttered.

* * *

"_Ha!_ Am I great or what?" Chloe exclaimed with a proud smile and leaned back in her chair. Clark walked over to her and looked at the computer screen.

"Chloe, why is it moving?" he asked and the blinking light started moving around on the map.

"Oh. Well that means…"

Chloe trailed off and looked up at Clark.

"That Brad is the one with the phone," Clark said and sighed.

"Great. How are we ever going to find him? Or Lois for that matter!" Chloe complained and walked over to her bed, looking down at Lois' jacket and bag.

Clark looked down at the computer screen again, realizing the light had stopped moving around. And he could hardly believe it when he saw where Brad was now located.

In the blink of an eye he was out the door and Chloe was left alone in the room.

* * *

**~ TO BE CONTINUED ~ **

**(COMING UP: THE FINALE CHAPTER!)  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

* * *

"_Yes_!"

The smile spread across Lois' face as the rope fell to the ground and she quickly stepped away from the pole, rubbing her sour wrists that already had bruises on them.

She looked around the place, trying to decide which way she should go. Brad would probably be back any second and there was no telling what could happen then. Lois started running towards the open barn door with a big lump inside her chest, hoping she would be long gone when Brad returned.

But suddenly the barn door slammed shut and Lois stopped dead in her tracks, her heart beating so fast she was afraid it would jump out of her chest any minute.

"What's the rush? Clark will be here any second," Brad said from somewhere inside the shadows. Lois started backing up from the door, making her way towards the stairs instead.

She didn't doubt that Clark would come for her, but she had the feeling that Brad wasn't going to give up without a fight. And considering his advantage, Lois wasn't so sure how it would all turn out.

She suddenly came to a stop when she backed into the stair railing, giving herself a fright. Without hesitation she quickly turned around and ran up the stairs, knowing very well that she wasn't alone.

"Too slow," Brad said he suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Well, you wouldn't be saying that if you didn't teleport. By definition that is cheating, you know," Lois said sarcastically, catching her breath.

"I wasn't aware that this was a competition. Either way, you're losing," Brad said.

"You should know that I rarely lose. And especially not to people like you," Lois said and suddenly the barn door flew open with a loud bang.

Brad quickly teleported away again and Lois turned around, staring down at Clark.

"What took you so long?" she asked with a relieved smile on her face.

Just then, Brad appeared behind Clark with a smirk.

"I see my suspicions about you were correct," he said and Clark quickly turned around, giving him a puzzled look.

"Look, Brad, I don't know what you are doing but I suggest you stop right now. Before anybody gets hurt or Dr. Palmer finds you," Clark said and Brad's smirk quickly disappeared.

"How do you know about him? Nobody is supposed to know!" he cried out.

"Brad, I'm on your side in all this. But I can't help you against Dr. Palmer unless you tell me the truth and stop this destructive behavior. You don't wanna hurt anybody, right?" Clark asked and Brad glanced up at Lois, and then looked over at Clark with a devious smile.

"Somebody like her?" Brad asked and looked up at Lois who still hadn't moved.

"Brad, I know you robbed those banks in Metropolis. The kidnapping is only making things worse. I'm willing to hear you out; but let her go first," Clark said, afraid to take his eyes off of Brad for even one second.

He was obviously not very reliable at this point but Clark had to give him a chance to prove himself despite everything.

"How chivalry of you, Clark, but I'm afraid it's not gonna work this time," Brad said and teleported away before Clark had the chance to react.

"Nice to see I'm not the only one immune to your charm," Lois called out from the loft, and Clark turned around just in time to see Brad appear right behind her.

He quickly put his arm around her neck, squeezing it tight. Lois did her best trying to wriggle out of his grip and trying to get in a good kick, but it didn't do any good. Brad was far stronger than she would have given him credit for.

"So, how about we do this my way? Clark, why don't you tell Lois about your little secret, huh?" Brad asked sarcastically and Clark stopped dead in his tracks.

"Here's an even better suggestion; why don't you just go to hell? Would make things a whole lot easier for everybody!" Lois said and tried looking over her shoulder at Brad.

At that he tightened the grip around her neck and started backing up, soon disappearing out of sight. Clark hurried up the stairs, finding the loft empty.

"Over here!" Brad suddenly said and Clark quickly turned around.

Brad was now standing by the stairs again and Lois seemed even more irritated than before. And no matter how hard she tried, she still couldn't get away from Brad.

"I've had just about enough of this. Just tell me what you want, Brad!" Clark shouted and Brad looked at him with a smirk.

"I thought that was pretty obvious by now, Clark. No, tell Lois your secret and then maybe I'll leave you all alone," Brad said and Clark clenched his fists.

There was no way he was going to tell Lois about his powers and how he ended up on Earth in the first place, but he needed to tell Lois something that would make Brad let her go. After that, Clark could take care of Brad in his own special way.

"How can I be sure that you're telling the truth?" Clark asked and Brad started laughing, which once again gave Lois the chills.

"You can't. Which is why you better start talking real soon," he said with a dark look in his eyes.

Clark realized that Brad was indeed evil and seemed to enjoy hurting people; playing with their minds and showing off his powers.

"Let Lois go first. She's got nothing to do with this now," Clark said, desperately trying to buy himself some time.

It wouldn't do Lois any good to find out about his secret and he certainly wasn't going to tell her about it like this.

"I think she's got _everything_ to do with this! I came back to Smallville for her but I knew that you would try and get in my way," Brad said and Lois couldn't refrain from rolling her eyes.

"Oh, get real! You really think farm boy over here is any threat to you? The only secret he has is a crush on the girl next door and even that isn't much of a secret," she said and Clark suppressed a grunt, praying that Lois' big mouth wouldn't get herself killed.

"Seems like you're the only one not aware of the irony in that," Brad said with a sinister smile and Lois felt the grip around her neck tighten again, making it harder for her to breathe normally.

She knew that it wouldn't take long now before she was gasping for air and Brad obviously didn't care what happened to her.

"Let her go or else I'm not saying anything!" Clark blurted out and started to get really worried. Brad nearly started laughing at him and moved closer to the stairs, stopping right at the edge of it.

"You're in no position of making demands, Clark. See, the great thing about teleportation is that just in the blink of an eye, you can escape a cruel fall down the stairs. Not unlike poor Lois here that doesn't have any powers to prevent her from falling. So I suggest you make up your mind in the next few seconds… _or else_," Brad whispered and Lois could feel him leaning backwards.

"Brad, this isn't the way to go. You still have the chance to do the right thing for once without anybody else getting hurt," Clark said and Brad started laughing again.

"Stop trying to convince me, Clark. Can't you tell that it's already too late?" he said and suddenly a loud bang echoed through the barn.

A few seconds later Clark could see blood dripping down Brad's shirt and he was slowly falling backwards down the stairs. And despite her best efforts, Lois was being dragged down along with him. Clark quickly rushed over and grabbed hold of her hand just as she was about to fall.

"Are you okay?" Clark asked after he pulled her back up again. Lois slowly nodded while leaning towards the railing, trying to catch her breath.

Clark noticed Lex down by the stairs, tucking away his gun and walking over to Brad's body. It wasn't exactly the ending Clark had hoped for but Brad had made it clear that he wasn't going to give up and at least Lois hadn't been harmed.

Although that didn't mean that Clark was ready to forgive and forget Lex's past actions. It just meant that he had been at the right place at the right time for once.

* * *

"Are you _sure_ you're okay?" Chloe asked with a concerned look as she handed Lois the glass of water. Lois removed the ice bag from her throat and slowly took a sip of the cold water, nodding at her cousin.

"I've been through worse, believe me. So there's no need of worrying folks," she said with a pale smile, looking up at Martha and Jonathan.

Chloe and Clark exchanged looks, knowing that Lois was back to her old self already.

"Well, it came pretty close to being worse, Lois," Martha said and Lois looked over at Clark, giving him a grateful smile.

"Good thing Smallville here is fast on his feet," she said and Clark smiled back at her, feeling relieved over the fact that things had turned out okay in the end.

This didn't necessary mean that Lois was going to be any less painful to be living with, but at least now Clark wouldn't complain so much about it.

"Although, there's one thing I don't get in all of this," Lois suddenly blurted out, finishing off her glass of water. "What was this 'secret' of yours that Brad kept talking about, Smallville?"

The room went dead silence and all eyes were on Clark. Out of all of them, Lois was the only one looking more confused than worried.

"Who knows? The guy was nuts!" Chloe blurted out before Clark had a chance to open his mouth.

Everyone else nodded along vigorously, especially Clark. Lois glanced over at him, a hint of suspicion in her eyes, as she got up from the table and walked over to put the glass down in the kitchen sink.

"You got that right," she said with her back against the others. "I mean, as if farm boy here would actually have any kind of powers and leading a double life? Please!"

Lois turned back around, a sarcastic laugh escaping her. The others chimed in but there was something about Lois' behavior giving Clark the distinct feeling that the matter wasn't dropped despite her apparent attempt to make everyone think so.

"Well, if you all excuse me, I'm gonna head upstairs and freshen up a bit," she blurted out after a moment's silence and gave everyone a quick grin before running up the stairs.

Clark watched as she rounded the corner, listening to her opening and closing the bathroom door before turning his attention towards to the others.

"Somehow I get the feeling that Brad's crazy talk got to her," Chloe said. "Not that I don't love my cousin but you better watch out, Clark. Once Lois has her suspicions about something, she always gets to the bottom of it."

"Yeah, I know," Clark sighed. "This means I need to be even more careful now."

"Best of luck to you then," Chloe said. "I spent one summer living with the Lanes and I couldn't even hide the last chocolate chip cookie from Lois for longer than five minutes!

"What I'm hiding is slightly bigger than a cookie, Chloe," Clark said with a frown.

"Precisely my point, Clark, so 'careful' doesn't even begin to cover with when it comes to Lois."

Martha and Jonathan looked to Clark, the expressions of their faces telling him that they obviously agreed with Chloe on the matter.

"Okay, point taken," he sighed. "So… any chance she could come and stay with you instead?"

Chloe started laughing at Clark's desperate attempt to get rid of Lois, although she knew that he was already warming up to her despite their constant bickering.

"Sorry, but I'm happily enjoying my Lois-free dorm room," she said as she got up from the kitchen table. "Call me if you need me."

"Thanks, Chloe," Clark smiled. She gave him a quick hug and waved goodbye to Martha and Jonathan before she stepped out the kitchen door.

Clark sighed heavily and turned to his parents, frowning at them.

"Any ideas?" he asked.

"Just that you should be more careful," Jonathan said. "Lois can be very persistent when she puts her mind to it."

"That's one way of putting it," Clark sighed.

* * *

Lois changed into her pajamas after the refreshing shower and was in the middle of untangling her hair with the hairbrush when there was a knock on the door.

She glared at herself in the mirror, a silent growl escaping her at the sight of her messy hair, before swinging the door open. On the other side of the threshold stood Clark, his hand up in mid air with a regrettable expression on his face.

"Is this a bad time?" he asked hesitantly, unable to keep his eyes off of Lois' hair.

"Depends on what you want, Smallville," she muttered and walked back over to the mirror, continuing to brush through the damp hair.

Clark felt the immediate urge to turn around and flee down the stairs, but he forced himself to step into the room. He gave it a quick onceover, finding clothes scattered across the entire floor. The top of the bed had piles of more clothes on it, along with various gossip magazines. His dresser, where Lois was now standing brushing her hair in front of the mirror, was cluttered with makeup products and more gossip magazines.

Clark just barely managed to suppress a grunt, moving aside some of the clothes on the bed and carefully sitting down. Lois finished brushing her hair and walked across the room to the bed stand, staring down at the cluttered floor with a puzzled expression.

"Looking for something?" Clark blurted out, unable to hold back a smirk. Lois looked up, the puzzled expression gone from her face and instead she was glaring at him.

"Who said you could sit down? I don't remember inviting you in, Smallville."

"Last time I checked this was still my room, although it sure doesn't look like it at the moment. Ever thought of doing some cleaning?"

"I have far more important things to do; like working. Besides, all my stuff makes the room looks way less geeky which is an improvement."

Lois got down on all four, searching underneath the bed for something, completely oblivious to Clark's glare. He told himself that there'd come a day when Lois would leave the farm and get her own place, meaning he hopefully wouldn't have to interact with her on a daily basis.

His train of thoughts was interrupted when Lois suddenly jumped on her feet with a satisfied grin, putting on her beloved bunny slippers. She admired them for a moment before looking and meeting Clark's stare, the satisfied grin wiped from her face in an instant.

"Okay, I give up!" she cried out, throwing her arms up in defeat. "What do you want, Smallville? I have other plans, you know."

"Like what? Going clubbing in your pajamas?"

"Wouldn't be the first time."

Clark couldn't mask the look of surprise on his face at her statement, although he didn't find it hard to picture Lois Lane in a club wearing pajamas for some reason. Out of all the girls he'd encountered in his life so far, Lois was definitely the most interesting one. At times, he forgot that she was actually related to Chloe.

"Earth to Clark Kent!" Lois called out and snapped her fingers at Clark, getting him back to reality again.

He had the strange habit of zoning out every now and then whenever he was around her, for better or worse.

"Right, sorry," he said. "Well, I really just wanted to make sure that you're alright after what happened today and that Brad's ramblings didn't get to you."

Lois hesitated for a moment with her reply, biting back a snarky comment at the last minute. Despite the fact that Clark got on her nerves constantly, she couldn't deny that he was proving to be a good friend who actually seemed to worry about her.

"Like I told you all downstairs; I'm _fine_," she said eventually, walking back to the dresser.

Clark watched as she started moving around some of her makeup products, apparently doing a half-hearted attempt at cleaning up. But Clark knew that something was weighing on her; something she didn't want to talk to him about.

"So you don't think I have any spectacular superpowers?" he said, followed by nervous laughter in his attempt to joke about the whole thing.

"I think I would've noticed if I was living under the same roof as some superhuman," Lois said with her back against Clark.

She was trying to sound sarcastic but there was something in her voice that almost made her sound disappointed instead. Clark tried reading her facial expression in the mirror but she intently looked down at the makeup, making it impossible. As the minutes went by in awkward silence, Clark realized that he was getting nowhere tonight and abruptly got off the bed.

"Nice to see your expectations of me are still non-existing," he said sarcastically as he moved towards the door opening.

Lois stopped what she was doing and met his stare, a mischievous smirk on her face.

"Hey, if you want a worshiper, go to Lana. I learned a long time ago not to have any expectations of people, but then again you _did_ save my life today. Guess that counts for something, huh?" she said as Clark crossed the threshold. They stared at each other for another moment before Clark headed down the stairs again and Lois closed the door.

She remained at the door with her hand on the knob for a minute, listening to Clark going down the stairs. Once it got quiet, Lois walked back over to the bed stand. She slowly sat down on the cluttered bed, hesitating for a moment before opening the bed stand drawer and getting out a folder. Inside the folder were a pile of papers, most of them _Torch_ articles written by Chloe. They were all about the meter freaks and mysterious saves in Smallville during Chloe's years in high school. And they all had one person in common; Clark Kent.

"Something tells me my expectations of you are about to get way higher, Smallville," Lois whispered to herself.

* * *

**~ THE BEGINNING OF A LEGEND ~ **


End file.
